The title town of the movie "Sin City: A Dame to Kill For" is filled with sex, violence and a whole lot of style — and Hollywood A-listers want to hang out there for some reason. "It turns out to be one that actors like," says "Sin City" comic-book creator Frank Miller. The writer, his co-director Robert Rodriguez and star Eva Green give USA Today's Brian Truitt a rundown on the hard-boiled anti-heroes and super-duper villains in the movie, opening today.

Dwight McCarthy (Josh Brolin)

The private eye was played in 2005's "Sin City" movie by Clive Owen, but Brolin takes over the character for a prequel story where his conniving old flame Ava Lord sashays back into his life just when he's trying to keep his darker side from coming out. Miller felt Brolin did his homework with the source material. "He's extremely devoted. There's no way he could have done what he did without seeing every inch there was to see about (the character)," Miller says of Brolin, adding that he has "almost a Cagney quality to him."

Ava Lord (Eva Green)

Miller describes Ava as having a supernatural ability to crawl into a man's head and turn his life upside down. The problem for the directors at first, though, was finding someone who could play an extra-diabolical femme fatale, Rodriguez says. But Green was a perfect fit. Ava uses her sexuality as a weapon -- the fewer clothes she has on, the more power she has over men. Says Green: "At the beginning I was like, 'Oh my god, I need to find some cracks, some humanity.' But actually, she's just really bad."

Johnny (Joseph Gordon-Levitt)

A new character to Sin City, Johnny's a gambler from out of town looking for girls and a major score — and all he needs to make magic happen at the slots is one dollar. However, his ambition does him no favors when he goes up against powerful men at a poker table. Johnny's very different from the other players in Sin City, Miller says. "I love the dimension he gives to the story. Also, Gordon-Levitt brings a kind of John Garfield quality to him."

Nancy Callahan (Jessica Alba)

The first "Sin City" covered Nancy's journey from abused girl to self-confident exotic dancer to losing her protector and love of her life, cop John Hartigan, to suicide. Her story's not over yet, though. Miller wrote a new tale and transforms her into a pistol-packing avenging angel out to stop the man she holds responsible for Hartigan's death. After starting out an innocent, Nancy has a great visual arc, Rodriguez says. "Jessica jumped all over and embraced it. It was fun to witness."

Marv (Mickey Rourke)

The first movie didn't end well for Marv: He was in an electric chair after getting revenge for the death of a loved one. But the boulder-jawed tough guy actually has a larger role to play in the prequel sections, from winding up with amnesia at a crash site to helping Nancy and Dwight. "He's a drunk and a brawler and very entertaining," Rodriguez says, though because fans of the first film know his ultimate fate, "you always have that sense of doom about him."

Senator Roark (Powers Boothe)

Roark had a small but important role as a villainous politician in the first Sin City, but the most sadistic and powerful man in town has a much higher profile this time. "This is Roark's movie. You can just tell, (Boothe) was putting a flag in a scene every day," Rodriguez says. Miller adds that "actors can teach you a lot, and Powers brings a very particular edge to him and a range." Green was equally impressed: "I love him. He's one of my favorite baddies ever."